Guest post from FillMyRecipe: Vegetable Rice (Pulav) seasoning mix

My girls are still absolutely crazy about rice, and these days I've been packing a hot thermos with rice dishes to send in my daughter's school lunch every day. I try to mix it up with the spices a little to give her different tastes from around the world. Today with the help of FillMyRecipe I made her a little taste of India for her lunch tomorrow using the spices for vegetable rice (pulav).

Her pre-packaged seasoning mix comes with all spices needs to make this delicious dish.



Pulav seasoning mix (single use)

½ tsp cumin seeds
2 pods green cardamom
1 pod black cardamom
1 bay leaf
1” stick cinnamon
¼ tsp clove
Pinch of saffron

What else you'll need

1 cup chopped vegetables (carrots, peas, green beans)
2 tsp oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup long-grained rice or basmati rice


To garnish

2 tsp oil,
1 tbsp chopped cashews
1 tbsp raisins
1/2 cup white onions chopped thin & long (optional)

Cooking Directions

Remove spices marked with * before serving

1. Heat oil in skillet on medium heat, lightly brown cumin seeds, green cardamom*, black cardamom*, bay leaf*, cinnamon*, clove* for 20 seconds.


2. Add chopped vegetables, stir fry 1 min


3. Add washed and strained rice, stir fry 1 min


4. Add water, saffron and salt, cook covered until rice is ready (Note: you could cook mixture in a rice cooker if you like)



Optional:

5. Garnish: fry cashews, onions and raisins in 2 tsp oil for 1 min until golden brown. Add garnish to cooked rice and vegetables, mix and serve hot



The rice was perfect, fragrant and delicious (I managed to sneak in a few bites while packing her lunch). Definitely another hit from FillMyRecipe!

Gluten free naan bread mix

I suppose I'm turning into a gluten free blog, simply because that's all our family eats now. For the most part I don't mind eating gluten free at home. My daughter was getting upset when she would catch me eating something she couldn't have so I just stopped buying it for myself altogether. But we LOVE Indian food and my favorite part has always been the naan bread. I didn't believe you could make a fluffy, chewy version without gluten. I was SO wrong!

Gluten free naan bread mix (single use)

1 1/3 cups rice flour
1/3 cup potato starch
1/3 cup tapioca starch
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon xanthan gum

What else you'll need

1 cup plain yogurt
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Fresh cilantro leaves (optional)

Combine dry mix with yogurt and mix well. It will be crumbly so mush it with your hands like play dough. Add in the lemon juice and mix completely. I also mixed in a handful of fresh cilantro leaves for flavor.

Divide dough into 8 balls and roll them out on a rice floured surface and place on baking sheets (I put mine on silicone baking mats to prevent sticking as well).



Put in the oven under the broiler for about 5 minutes, until tops begin to brown. Take them out and brush them with melted butter (and sprinkle on a little salt if you're a salt addict like me!)



Serve with your favorite curry dishes. I made channa masala and spiced basmati.



This was... WOW! It had the same chewy, fluffy, delicious taste that regular naan bread does. I also love that it doesn't have any yeast in it either, since none of us tolerate it very well.

Gluten free waffle mix

Sorry for the slacking. I've wanted to use my kitchen time lately to try new non mix recipes instead. But I've also been working on a lot of new gluten free recipes for my husband and daughter and managed to perfect one recently for pancake Tuesday...

Gluten Free Waffle Mix (single use)

3/4 cup rice flour
1/4 cup potato starch
1/4 cup tapioca starch
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

What else you'll need

1 cup milk
1/4 cup oil

Combine dry mix with milk and stir well. Stir in oil and mix well until uniform. Pour batter into waffle iron and enjoy. I added chocolate chips to some of my waffles to make them even more delicious. These waffles were the best I've ever had, even better than the regular ones!

Gluten free chocolate cake mix

It was my husband's birthday yesterday and even though he's gone gluten free, I still wanted to make him his favorite birthday treat- chocolate cupcakes! This is what I came up with...

Gluten free chocolate cake mix (single use)

3/4 cup rice flour
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/4 cup corn starch
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt



What else you'll need

1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup water
2 eggs

Combine mix with wet ingredients and blend well.



I baked mine into cupcakes. Baking times will vary depending on pan size, but bake at 350 F.



These were delicious! I didn't even need to frost them (although mainly that was to keep the sugar levels down for the kids...)



They were a perfect little birthday treat.

Lemon Cranberry Muffin Mix

It was too cold to go outside today so we all stayed inside watching movies, trying out our new juicer and baking. I remembered how delicious my lemon cranberry cookies were so I decided to try something similar like...

Lemon Cranberry Muffin Mix (single use)

1 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon dried lemon peel
1/4 teaspoon salt

I made mine into a jar gift, although it's a little late for Christmas presents. Next holiday maybe?



What else you'll need

1/3 cup water
1/4 cup oil
1 egg
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Combine wet ingredients and blend, then stir in mix.



Spoon into paper muffin cups and bake at 350 F until tops begin to turn golden.





Delicious and easy!

Gift in a jar: Oatmeal bread mix

Yeah. So when it rains it pours. Our car is dying, our dryer crapped out this weekend, the rain gutters are falling off our roof in a dangerous way, we just had to hire a plumber to unclog a floor drain in our basement, we got our ducts cleaned and we just went on vacation this month. Oh and yes, Christmas shopping...

As I often do in times like this I have myself on a strict no spending policy. I'm eating what I have in the freezer and cupboards and staying away from the stores. But... this is also the time of year I always make my jar mixes for people and I can't make all of them using what I already have here. Or can I?

This summer I purchased a case of extra large mason jars which are perfect for baking mixes. And we literally have about 50 pounds of oatmeal after a big sale at Costo (my oldest daughter LOVES oatmeal). So I thought what can I do with this?

Oatmeal bread mix

3 cups flour
3/4 cup quick oats
3 tablespoons sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons salt

In a separate sachet, add 1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast. It's much cheaper to buy in bulk this way. The baggies can be found in the craft section of the dollar store, the small size come 80 in a package for a dollar.



I like to layer my ingredients in a jar to make it pretty, then put the yeast sachet at the top before screwing on the lid.



What else you'll need

1 1/3 cups warm water
2 tablespoons oil

To make dissolve the yeast in warm water until it's frothy, then add in oil then the mix and stir. Once it's well mixed you can knead it. Then leave it in a large mixing bowl covered with a cloth in a warm place to rise. Because there is no 'warm' place in our house I left it in my oven with the light bulb on to warm it up a bit (the way I do when I dry food in there).



One the dough has risen (it's at least doubled in size), take it out, knead it again and put it into 2 greased loaf pans. Cover them and let them rise again.

Bake at 350 F until the bread starts to brown on the top and bottom.



I fed the test run bread to my daughter for her after school snack and put more in her lunch today. Both my kids couldn't get enough of it so I think I'll be whipping up some more mix for myself as well.

Guest post from FillMyRecipe: Curried Green Beans Spice Mix

Today we have Sara from FillMyRecipe guest posting for the blog. Back in June she posted with her delicious curried cauliflower and carrots spice mix. I still make that recipe all the time to serve with tandoori chicken , chana masala, or masoor daal.

Curried Green Beans Spice Mix (single use)

Contributed by Sara Parthasarathy, co-founder, FillMyRecipe LLC



Fresh green beans delicacy is flavored with genuine ethnic spices included in this package. This popular recipe of South India is relished as a side dish with rice and lentil soup.

Whenever I dine at an Indian restaurant, I look forward to savoring the salivating curries, flavorful rice dishes and soft breads. While these dishes from North India are popularly served in Indian restaurants in United States and Canada, there are many more interesting dishes prepared in other parts of India that are healthy, tasteful, and unique. You see, India is a land of many states, and each state has its own culture, its own cuisine, and yes, its own language! Imagine driving to the next province or state and experiencing a different culture, different food, and speaking a different language!!

I hail from Tamil Nadu, one of the South Indian states, and, the dishes I make are way different from those generally available in local Indian restaurants. Born a vegetarian and living life as one, I have collected a variety of South Indian dishes that have been passed down through the generations. Many of these dishes fall into the vegan category as well, since they don’t include dairy products.

Here is the recipe for one such dish – Curried Green Beans – an all time favorite of mine, that my great grandmother used to cook! My great grandmother was a culinary master, whipping up exotic South Indian curries with aplomb, cooking for a family of no less than twenty hungry youngsters. To this day, her culinary skills are unrivaled – and I am sure you will love her simple recipe.

Add a unique twist to this year’s Thanksgiving Dinner with this new Curried Beans casserole! You can acquire pre-measured, individually packed spices for this recipe from www.fillmyrecipe.com .

Enjoy the experience of cooking this flavorful dish!

Curried Green Beans recipe pack contains following ingredients for 2 servings:



Prep time: 5-10 minutes, Cook time: 15 minutes

Ingredients assembled in the Spice Mix packet

1 tsp splitblack gram lentil
1 tsp chick peas lentil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/4 tsp red chili powder
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1/4 tsp asafetida

You need

1/2 lb (2 cups)fresh green beans cut into 1” pieces (Tip: you could use frozen beans as well)
1 tbsp cooking oil
¼ tsp salt
1 tbsp grated coconut (optional)
10” non-stick skillet



Cooking Directions: (Remember to stop and savor the flavors!)

1. Heat oil in pan, sputter mustard seeds
2. Add cumin seeds, asafetida, split black gram lentil and chick peas lentil fry to golden brown
3. Add green beans, salt, turmeric powder and red chili powder
4. Cook covered for 10 mins stirring every 2-3 mins.
5. Remove cover, stir fry on medium heat until moisture evaporates
6. Stir in shredded coconut (optional), remove from fire

Variation: substitute ¼ cup green beans with carrot cut into 1” cubes

Serve hot with rice and lentil soup





I tried out her spice packet in the Mix It Up kitchen. First I assembled my ingredients:



I stir fried all the spices in order, then added the green beans. I omitted the red chili powder which I suggest anyone with small children do as well. Use it if you like spicy food!! When I make the recipes from scratch I substitute the chili with paprika to keep the red color/mild pepper flavor. Also if you can't track down asafoetida you can substitute 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder and 1/4 teaspoon onion powder for 1/4 teaspoon asafoetida (I know this doesn't add up, but it works. I use it all the time in my Indian cooking).



I served them with some basmati rice. I ate the whole thing myself because it was so good and I didn't want to share.



FillMyRecipe is a great company because it allows you to try out Indian spices in small quantities without buying huge packets of spice right away. They have many pre made packets but can also 'fill your recipe' by providing the spices you need in a recipe you find in a cookbook or online.

You can also 'like' their Facebook page.